Suit No:
Suit No: FCT/HC/CV/366/2025: C & K Investment Ltd v. Mrs. Theo-Emegano Uzoamaka
A few days ago, precisely on the 27th of November 2025, the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, coram: Hon. Justice O.O. Bamodu, delivered its’ Final Judgement in the above suit wherein we represented the Defendant.
Background Facts
Sometime in 2013, the Claimant was awarded a N70,757,000.00 contract by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) (otherwise known as “the Initial NDDC Award Contract”) to construct Solar-Powered Street Lights at Urban Centre in Cross River State, Nigeria.
In dire need of financial assistance to execute the project, the Claimant, through its Directors, approached the Defendant to be its financial partner for the execution of the project, with both parties entering into a series of negotiations that culminated in the execution of a Partnership Agreement between them.
The Partnership Agreement required the Defendant to provide a total of N11,000,000.00 for the execution of the project, and in return, would be entitled to 65% of the NDDC Contract Award Sum as well as a refund of the N11,000,000 provided by her for the execution of the project.
The Defendant fulfilled her obligation, and the project was successfully completed. Thereafter, the Claimant, for the first time, suddenly informed the Defendant that the NDDC Award Contract required revalidation before payment of the Contract sum could be made to them by the NDDC.
To this end, the Defendant, having made substantial investments in the execution of the project, made passionate appealsin writing to the NDDC on behalf of the Claimant for the revalidation of the NDDC Award Contract. This led to several productive meetings that ultimately earned not just the revalidation of the Award Contract, but also an upward review of its sum from N70,757,000.00 to N245,000,000, with full payment made thereafter to the bank account of the Claimant.
Curiously, thereafter, the Claimant gave the Defendant a pastry sum of N13,000,000.00 and N10,000,000.00 respectively, contrary to the formula of 65% proposed in the Partnership Agreement that should have earned her a total of N170,250,000.
In line with Clause 8 of the Partnership Agreement, the Defendant, through her counsel, I.M. Abibo, Esq of Granville Abibo & Co. caused a Notice of Arbitration to be served on the Claimant who, in defiance of same, hurriedly filed this suit via an Originating Summons at the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja for the Honourable Court to interpret the provisions of the Partnership Agreement and determine whether it extends to/covers the Revalidated NDDC Contract Award.
The Claimant argued that the Partnership Agreement only covered the Initial NDDC Award Contract and did not extend to the Revalidated NDDC Award Contract, and by implication, they remain exonerated from any obligation to the Defendant since the Initial NDDC Award Contract was not validated at the time the parties entered into the Partnership Agreement.
Our position was straightforward: That the Partnership Agreement between the Claimant and the Defendant ideally covers both the Initial NDDC Award Contract and the Revalidated NDDC Award Contract, thereby sustaining the Defendants’ entitlement of 65% of the Revalidated NDDC Award Contract sum.
Judgement
In its’ Final Judgement, the court agreed with our position by interpreting the Partnership Agreement to cover both the Initial NDDC Contract Award and the Revalidated NDDC Contract Award for all intents and purposes. The court further held that the Claimant cannot approbate and reprobate, resolved all issues in favour of the Defendant, and dismissed this suit with a cost of N300,000.
Granville Abibo & Co
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